Spiritual let down

Angus Buchan said something on the weekend which resonated with me….he said that “he might be accused of emotionalism…..but what is wrong with being emotional?”

Who gave us emotions, and who tells us not to use them?

Certainly not the bible, nor the Judeo roots of our faith. Have you read the scriptures? Do you not read about the celebrations, the feasts, the passionate emotion charged worship of the priests, kings and prophets?

Think about those who tell us off for being too emotional, are they the sort of people we should emulate?

Consider these contrasts….

David…..Michal….

Jesus….Pharisees….

One issue though is that of let down, or as musicians might say, “monday morning blues’. But even this is recognised in the scriptures. We cannot be on a continual high, we need to have times of rest, solitude, silence, contemplation. But those are times to celebrate as well….celebrate the quietness…just as we celebrate the noise.

The noise of 2000 plus men chanting for more worship songs is something that resonates within me even today, three days after the event, as I sit in the quiet of my study.

I've done a number of back to back ministry trips to Malaysia & the Philippines. What was always noticeable was the vastly different emotive responses in these 2 nations. Malaysian congregations were much quieter & less demonstrative. I put this down to a variety of things but primarily cultural backgrounds.

Have we as Australians become more emotionally expressive as we have moved from primarily British roots to Mediterranean & American influences?

I read a great book a couple of years ago called Heart of the Artist by Rory Noland. He talks about the arty and creative members of the church who tend to be more in touch with sensitivity, their emotions and being highly aesthetic, that they ‘feel’ things more intensely. I think that’s true and he points out that these people with their very different take on things are a blessing to the body of Christ.